1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a conveyor, and more particularly to a continuous conveyor with a driven chain for transporting individual hangers by their hooks.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Various types of conveyors are known for conveying articles of clothing hanging on clothes hangers. For example, the hanger hooks can be suspended from a rotatably mounted feed screw, and a transport movement in the horizontal direction can be conferred on them by the rotation of the feed screw (DE-OS 25 06 587). Automatic loading of the hanger hooks onto such a spindle conveyor is not reproducible because it is not possible to predict which turn of the feed screw will engage and transport the hanger hooks.
German Patent 22 63 330 teaches providing a vertically circulating chain with lateral pushers to transport articles of clothing hanging on hangers in the vertical direction, the hooks of the clothes hangers being suspended on the pushers. In this fashion, for example, transportation over several stories of a building is possible.
German Patent 38 07 280 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,903,819 disclose an unloading device for support hanger conveyor carriages in which the hanger hooks are pushed individually along a sliding rod by a circulating conveyor provided with pushers, located above the hanger hooks. The pusher on the conveyor engages the hanger hooks from above. The hanger hook is guided by the sliding rod supporting it.
DE-GM 70 11 838 discloses a roller chain with collateral transporting clamps (5). The transporting clamps bear upwardly projected transporting jaws (7), which are pivotally mounted. This type of transporting chain is used with packaging machines, for example for transporting small boxes. The pivotability of the jaws (7) enables the chain to be adjusted to transport boxes of different sizes. In this arrangement, the jaws will not be pivotable unless the chain is horizontal.
Also of background interest is DE-GM 92 10 120, which was registered in Germany as a GM on Dec. 12, 1993, after the priority date of the present application.
Other patent documents of interest are DE-GM 88 09 769, DE-OS 33 36 190, DE-GM 90 02 594, DE-OS 39 29 158, DE-OS 21 21 087, DE-OS 26 06 738, DE-OS 39 29 156, DE-GM 90 01 627, DE-GM 90 03 620, and EP 0 362 936-A1.